Greenies Treats?

[Luna10]

Hi guys! My 4 yr old cat, Luna, had a check up the other day. She has feline leukemia just fyi. Other than a cold here and there she's a very healthy girl. She does have gingivitis and some plaque. The vet suggested we start giving her greenies dental treats. So I ordered some right away. They came today. In the last few hours I've given her 4 treats. The instructions say 16 per day, but that seems a bit excessive.

I should have read reviews before hand, but since they were recommended from my vet, I figured they've got to be safe. I just read some pretty bad reviews about these treats, making their pets sick with diarrhea and vomiting. I'd love to hear some opinions. Should I stop giving them to her?

 

[MeganLLB]

I've given them to my dog before and they give him diarrhea.

I think that is probably that max amount you should give not that that is the recommended amount

 

[Luna10]

Thanks for the reply!
Oh I see. So no more than 16 a day. I gotcha. Just to be safe, I don't think I'll be giving her anymore.

 

[Furballsmom]

It's frustrating and I think challenging for vets to keep up with the realities of everything going on with pet food. Hang in there!

 

[Luna10]

Very true! Thank you!

It's frustrating and I think challenging for vets to keep up with the realities of everything going on with pet food. Hang in there!

 

[EmmiTemmi]

One of my boys loves them and has done very well on them as far as keeping his teeth healthy. But my other boy, I fed him some greenies and he vomited 5 times that day, so I haven't had the courage to ever give him another one. I guess it depends on the cat.

 

[cheesycats]

I do not believe hard crunchy treats do anything for oral health. My feral rescue was on them and it did nothing for his tartar buildup at all. Brushing is the only thing I would suggest for cats. Or giving them raw chicken gizzards to chew here and there. I can’t rememebr the source but I watched a video once of a 3D model of a cat eating a large kibble type deal for teeth health and in reality it only scrapes off the very tip of the tooth (if your cat chews it at all. Most do not) and the tip of their pointed tooth is not the issue. It’s the base where tarter builds and disease starts. And crunchy large treats and kibble simply do not reach those areas. I always recommend brushing teeth if at all possible. There’s really nothing that compares.

 

[molly92]

My aunt is a vet and she has seen enough greenies-related digestive issues to recommend against them. But, some animals clearly aren't bothered by them at all. If fed sparingly, as treats should be, they're probably fine for many cats. I do think 16 treats is a lot though! Pet food companies almost always inflate the serving size recommendation because they want you to buy more.

I also agree that the evidence for treats helping teeth is thin. When we eat crunchy cookies and crackers it definitely doesn't help scrape anything off our teeth, so why would it work for a cat?

 

[MeganLLB]

My aunt is a vet and she has seen enough greenies-related digestive issues to recommend against them. But, some animals clearly aren't bothered by them at all. If fed sparingly, as treats should be, they're probably fine for many cats. I do think 16 treats is a lot though! Pet food companies almost always inflate the serving size recommendation because they want you to buy more.

I also agree that the evidence for treats helping teeth is thin. When we eat crunchy cookies and crackers it definitely doesn't help scrape anything off our teeth, so why would it work for a cat?

I don't know if this means much but greenies are VOHC accepted to "help control tartar".

According to the VOHC website, "VOHC exists to recognize products that meet pre-set standards of plaque and calculus (tartar) retardation in dogs and cats. Products are awarded the VOHC Seal of Acceptance following review of data from trials conducted according to VOHC protocols. The VOHC does not test products itself."

But products that have this seal are presumably supposed to have shown to have some type of effectiveness if used correctly.

 

[Levioosa]

I don't use greenies for dental health, but I do use them as treats after I trim their nails or brush their teeth. It hasn't bothered my cats at all, but I also only give like 6 at a time and it's not daily.

 

[MissMolly08]

My cat likes greenies and hasn't had any issues!
I have tried healthier treats and she hates them. I have a full bag of whole life freeze dried turkey and a whole bag of blue buffalo treats that she won't touch .
I gave up. I don't even feed her treats everyday so it's not a huge deal to me if she has a little "junk food". I can't blame her. I like chips and ice cream on occasion and when I'm craving junk, no healthy alternative will do!

 

[happilyretired]

You must have my cat's twin. She loves Greenies, so I wanted to give her a 'healthier' snack and bought bags of freeze dried turkey and chicken (among her favorite flavors in canned food), but she won't touch those snacks at all!

 

[MissMolly08]

You must have my cat's twin. She loves Greenies, so I wanted to give her a 'healthier' snack and bought bags of freeze dried turkey and chicken (among her favorite flavors in canned food), but she won't touch those snacks at all!

Yep. Molly doesn't even seem to recognize the blue buffalo treats as food. I will hold one out in my hand and she sniffs it then headbutts my hand and walks away like "wth are you offering me?!" lol

 

[happilyretired]

My girl is a Molly, too! I've put her 'heathy' treats in her treat dish, but she totally ignores them. If I add a couple of Greenies, those will disappear, but not the 'healthy' treats.

As you point out, our own human 'treats' are usually junk food, so why not the cat's?

 

[xcourtney3]

If you don't feel comfortable with the Greenies, you could use Science Diet Oral Care dry food as treats. It is also VOHC approved

 

[happilyretired]

That's exactly what my vet recommended! Although it's a dry food, I feed it as treats (hoping it will still be effective).
My Molly loves them.

 

[xcourtney3]

I use them when I give one of my cats his daily medicine. I don't know if it works, but if I'm going to use a dry treat, might as well use one that has a chance to do something positive lol

 

[happilyretired]

Yes, my girl is rather addicted to treats, so I want them to do some good, if possible.